Functional Aspects of the Lower Size-Limit of Nematodes

No metrics data to plot.

The attempt to load metrics for this article has failed.

The attempt to plot a graph for these metrics has failed.

The full text of this article is not currently available.

Brill’s MyBook program is exclusively available on
BrillOnline Books and Journals. Students and scholars affiliated with an
institution that has purchased a Brill E-Book on the BrillOnline platform
automatically have access to the MyBook option for the title(s) acquired by the
Library. Brill MyBook is a print-on-demand paperback copy which is sold at a
favorably uniform low price.

A theoretical investigation of the form-function relationship in the pharynx of nematodes leads to the conclusion that there exists a lower limit to the length of the pharynx and, a f ortiori, to the length of the body. This minimal length can be lowered only by decreasing the internal hydrostatic pressure in the body cavity. A low pressure will interfere with the locomotion of the nematode and it is to be expected that very small nematodes will show atypical ways of locomotion. This seems indeed to be the case.